1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an input-output apparatus selecting method to be adopted in a network system connecting computers and input-output apparatuses to each other as well as relates to a machine readable medium for recording a program prescribing the method.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a network system wherein a plurality of computers are connected to each other by communication cables and the like, normally, a plurality of input-output apparatuses are also connected to the network system in addition to the computers. The network system allows connection of a number of categories of input-output apparatus such as printers, scanners, facsimile apparatuses and digital copying machines to mention a few. Each of the computers connected to the network system is capable of utilizing all the input-output apparatuses. When a desired input-output apparatus can not be used due to a failure occurring therein or when a desired input-output apparatus is not immediately available because the apparatus is being used by another user, a substitute for the desired apparatus can be used. As a result, the utilization efficiency of the facilities as a whole can be increased, resulting in a reduced total cost.
Since the number of input-output apparatuses that can be used by the user is large and a screen of a computer for selecting an input-output apparatus merely displays type names of the apparatuses, on the other hand, the user selects a wrong apparatus in many cases.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a typical configuration of the conventional network system. As shown in the figure, personal computers and input-output apparatuses such as printers, a facsimile apparatus and digital copying machines are connected to a communication line 1 to form a LAN (Local Area Network). To be more specific, A and B personal computers 11 and 12, A, B and C printers 21, 22 and 23, a facsimile apparatus (FAX) 31 and A and B digital copying machines 41 and 42 are connected to the communication line 1 of the LAN in this typical configuration.
The communication line 1 is implemented by a concrete means such as a communication cable, radio communication or an optical fiber.
Data generated by each of the A and B personal computers 11 and 12 to be printed is temporarily put in a spool thereof before being transmitted later to one of the A, B and C printers 21, 22 and 23 connected to the LAN by way of the communication line 1 in accordance with scheduling.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the A personal computer 11. It should be noted that, since the B personal computer 12 has the same configuration as the A personal computer 11, only the configuration of the latter is shown in the figure. As shown in FIG. 2, in addition to a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 110 and a bus 111, the A personal computer 11 comprises components such as a RAM unit 112 used as a main memory, a VRAM unit 113 used as a video memory, a hard disc unit 114, a network interface circuit 115, a display unit 116, a keyboard 117 and a mouse 118 which are connected to the CPU 110 by the bus 111. As the display unit 116, a component such as a CRT, a liquid crystal display unit or a plasma display unit can be used. The operator enters a command and input data to the A personal computer 11 typically via the keyboard 117 and the mouse 118. The mouse 118 can be replaced by any pointing device such as a tablet device, a truck ball device or a touch panel device.
The CPU 110 executes a variety of programs loaded in the RAM unit 112 to carry out various kinds of processing and to control the peripherals. The VRAM unit 113 is used for storing data such as images and characters to be displayed on the display unit 116. A hard disc incorporated in the hard disc unit 114 is used for storing a variety of programs and various kinds of data in a variety of files to be loaded to the RAM unit 112. The network interface circuit 115 is an interface between the A personal computer 11 and the communication line 1 of the LAN. To put it in detail, the A personal computer 11 exchanges data with the input-output apparatuses and the other B personal computer 12 connected to the LAN through the network interface circuit 115.
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a hierarchical structure of pieces of software, that is, programs and pieces of data, which are loaded into the RAM unit 112. In the hierarchical structure, the lower the level of a layer, the closer the layer to hardware. The software layer at the highest level is an ordinary application program such as a word processor, a tabular computation program, a data base or a CAD program. When a command such as a request for printing is issued by a piece of such application software, a screen for selecting an output apparatus such as a dialog box is displayed, allowing the user to specify a printer or another output apparatus to which data is to be printed. Such a screen corresponds to an input-output apparatus selecting program at a level beneath the application program in the hierarchical software structure.
At a level below the input-output apparatus selecting program, there exists an OS (operating system). An application program and an input-output apparatus selecting program at levels higher than the OS run, making use of system calls and interface programs provided by the OS. At a level beneath the OS, there exist a variety of drivers for use by the OS in controlling the input-output apparatuses. The drivers include printer drivers for controlling the A, B and C printers 21 to 23, a scanner driver for controlling a scanner not shown in FIG. 1 and a FAX driver for controlling the facsimile apparatus 31.
A SPOOL (Simultaneous Peripheral Operation On-Line) program temporarily accumulates data output by a printer driver to be printed on one of the printers 21 to 23 connected to the LAN in the hard disc unit 114 employed in the A personal computer 11. Later on, the data is transmitted to the printer in accordance with scheduling. A protocol control program controls a communication protocol for transmitting data to an output apparatus such as the printers 21 to 23 and the FAX apparatus 31 connected to the LAN and receiving data from an input apparatus on the LAN such as the scanner. The protocol control program creates a command for putting data in a packet of a protocol such as the TCP/IP.
FIG. 4A is a diagram showing a printing dialog box which is displayed on a screen when an application program issues a print command. The printing dialog box allows the user to set various kinds of data related to printing. As shown in the figure, a range of pages of data to be printed and the number of printed copies can be set on the right hand side of the printing dialog box. On the left hand side, on the other hand, the name of a printer to which data is to be printed is displayed along with information unique to the printer such as status, the model number and connection of the printer. A printer serving as an output destination can be changed by clicking the display area of the printer name or a triangular mark placed at an adjacent location on the right side of the display area being pointed to by a mouse cursor.
When the display area of the printer name or the adjacent triangular mark on the printing dialog box is clicked, a list of the names of available printers is displayed below the display area of the printer name as shown in FIG. 4B. A desired printer to which data to be printed is to be output can be specified by clicking one of the names of the available printers on the list.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing another example of a dialog box for setting an input-output apparatus which is displayed on the screen when an application program makes a request for setting of an input-output apparatus. The dialog box for setting an input-output apparatus allows the user to set an input apparatus as a source of an input, an output apparatus as a destination of an output, and operating conditions of an input-output apparatus set as an input source/output destination. The input-output apparatus set as an input source/output destination can be changed by clicking an area displaying the name of an input-output apparatus or a triangular mark placed at an adjacent location on the right side of the display area being pointed to by a mouse cursor. In the case of the dialog box shown in FIG. 5, a name ‘Printer A’ is displayed in the area.
In a method of specifying an input-output apparatus like the conventional one described above, only the name of an input-output apparatus is displayed. In the case of the dialog box shown in FIG. 5, for example, only the name ‘Printer A’ is displayed. Thus, the user does not know at all what location in the place of business the printer named ‘Printer A’ is actually installed at or whether the printer named ‘Printer A’ is placed at a location in close proximity to the user or somebody else. In addition, in the case of a dialog box displaying only a model number to indicate an input-output apparatus, the user also does not know whether the apparatus is a printer or another kind of equipment.
As a result, the user is prone to a mistake of specifying a printer located at a wrong location as a destination of an output. In the case of such a mistake, the user has to search some printers for the paper on which data should have been printed. In some cases, the paper searched for by the user is even lost.
In addition, in the case of a document, the contents of which have to be kept in strict confidence, care must be exercised so as to avoid a mistake in specifying an output apparatus.
Furthermore, in the case of a dialog box displaying only the model number of an input-output apparatus, it is necessary to verify the type of the apparatus.
Moreover, in the case of a multifunctional office machine connected to the network system such as a digital copying machine also provided with the functions of a printer, a facsimile apparatus and a scanner, it is also necessary to specify which function the multifunctional office machine is supposed to carry out. As a result, the operation to specify a multifunctional office machine becomes complicated, making the user prone to a mistake in selecting a machine.
In addition, in the case of a wide area network system for connecting apparatuses owned by a plurality of departments of a company or apparatuses installed on a plurality of floors of a building as assumed in some embodiments of the present invention, data may be output to an output apparatus of a wrong department or an output apparatus installed on a wrong floor.
Furthermore, in the case of transmission of a text to an individual, the screen displayed by the personal computer does not include information indicating an output apparatus installed at a location in closest proximity to the individual. Thus, another means has to be relied on in order to find an output apparatus closest to the individual. As a result, the operation becomes cumbersome and it is thus quite within the bounds of possibility that a wrong output apparatus is specified.
Moreover, in the case of specification of an input-output apparatus used as a substitute for a desired input-output apparatus which happens to be out of order, the screen displayed by the personal computer does not include information indicating a substitute installed at a location in closest proximity to the broken one. Thus, another means has to be relied on in order to find a substitute installed at a location closest to the broken one. As a result, the operation becomes cumbersome and it is thus quite within the bounds of possibility that a wrong output apparatus is specified.
In addition, in the case of a job to print an extremely large number of copies by using equipment such as a copying machine in a limited period of time which can not be achieved with the conventional copying machine, there is no function for automatically distributing the job to a plurality of output apparatuses connected to the network system.
In a printer control apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 5-108283, a time it takes to walk from a computer to each printer is stored in advance and a printer installed at a location in closest proximity to a computer issuing a printing request is selected automatically as a recipient of data to be printed.
Since the printer control apparatus does not allow the user of the computer to select an output apparatus freely at the user's own will, however, the apparatus can not be used as a solution to the problem described above.
On the other hand, a printer service displaying system disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 7-210345 displays printers, printing queues and printing jobs as icons and graphics to clarify relations among them and allows the relations to be changed.
However, the printer service displaying system does not provide a solution to the problem described above either because each icon merely indicates a printer instead of a location at which a printer is installed such as a location in a place of business.